Ballot Rebellion: Exploring Why Over 100,000 UK Voters Choose to Spoil Their Votes

Why do some activists encourage ballot spoiling rather than abstaining from voting?

When an individual is reluctant to support any of the candidates, what drives them to still show up at a polling station or complete a mail-in ballot? Sky News explores the reasons and methods behind voters deliberately spoiling their ballots, and what occurs subsequently.

Journalist @jos_franks

Tuesday, July 2, 2024, 21:

Politicians have spent weeks wooing voters, yet when it comes time to vote on Thursday, not all individuals will support a contender.

In the most recent national vote, over 100,000 individuals invalidated their voting slips through numerous methods.

Why do individuals take the time to visit a polling place or complete a mail-in ballot if they have no interest in supporting any politicians?

Sky News explores the reasons and methods behind spoiled ballots and discusses the subsequent processes.

What leads certain voters to invalidate their ballots?

It is believed that a significant number of individuals who submit spoiled ballots do so intentionally, as they find none of the candidates or political parties appealing.

Certain voters may favor a political party that isn't contesting elections in their locality, or they might still be making up their minds about which candidate to support.

In the UK, individuals aged 18 and above are permitted to vote for only one candidate; however, in the recent general election, over 20,000 voters supported multiple candidates.

Discover Further: Manifesto Review – what are the major commitments of each party? Does casting a vote make a difference?

Why are voters who are unhappy encouraged to deface their ballots?

Individuals disillusioned with politics as a whole, or with specific candidates in a given election, can readily choose to abstain from voting either by not showing up at the polls on election day or by opting not to participate in mail-in voting.

In the most recent national vote in 2019, only 67.3% of eligible UK voters participated, leaving a significant number of adults who did not cast their ballots.

Activists contend that it is more effective to go to the polls and deliberately spoil your ballot rather than not voting at all, regardless of your opinion of the candidates.

Voting Counts, a group focused on boosting political involvement among young adults, states that voting is an effective method for expressing discontent with political leaders.

Casting a spoiled ballot, it suggests, makes you a representative for those who feel disconnected.

The organization emphasizes that since every voided ballot is tallied and noted, "your indifference to the political parties will be acknowledged rather than overlooked."

The idea is that a large number of invalid or deliberately spoiled ballots could compel politicians to consider ways to re-engage with voters who feel disconnected.

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What causes individuals to invalidate their ballots?

Campaigners contend that the ballot paper serves as your canvas when it comes to casting a spoiled vote.

As previously noted, a familiar strategy is to support multiple candidates, while some individuals choose to submit an empty ballot when casting their vote.

Others may choose to mark an X in each checkbox, or even draw a large X over the entire voting slip.

However, others take a more imaginative approach, using swear words, venting about political figures, or sketching various images…

A meticulously drawn penis can still be considered valid.

In the 2015 national elections, Conservative representative Glyn Davies received an unexpected vote when an offensive doodle made beside his name on the ballot was ruled as legitimate.

Mr. Davies shared on his Facebook at the moment: "A voter chose to sketch a meticulous depiction of male genitalia rather than placing a cross in my designated spot on one of the ballot papers.

"Remarkably, since it was precisely marked within the boundaries of the box, the returning officer considered it a legitimate vote.

"I'm uncertain if the artist intended it to matter, but I appreciate it nonetheless. If I were aware of their identity, I would personally express my gratitude to him or her."

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What occurs with invalid ballots?

When a vote counter encounters a ballot that is marked up or damaged, it is not automatically considered invalid.

Initially, it is placed in a stack of "questionable" ballot papers.

Votes that are unmarked, obviously damaged, or those where the voter's choice is unclear, are all grouped together in this stack.

The designated official overseeing the tally, known as the returning officer, will review the votes to identify any that are not valid.

The Electoral Commission has stated that there is no need to delay until the final tally is complete, and recommends that the procedure be conducted consistently during the count, in plain sight of authorized attendees.

When a voter's choice is ambiguous, if they submit an empty ballot, if they violate electoral guidelines by selecting multiple candidates, or if they have obviously defaced their ballot, it will typically be considered void.

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Nonetheless, representatives present at the counting site for various candidates have the authority to raise objections if they believe a vote has been improperly tallied.

Upon completion of the voting process, the total of invalid ballots is compiled and declared, together with the individual vote counts for each candidate.

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How many individuals invalidate their voting papers?

During the 2019 UK general election, approximately 0.36% of the votes, amounting to 117,101 ballots, were discarded.

Included in these were 20,983 ballots where voters selected multiple candidates, 1,585 that contained a distinguishing mark, and 93,959 that had no marks at all.

In Lancashire's Chorley, there were 1,303 spoiled ballots, the highest count observed across all UK constituencies, representing one in every 31 legitimate votes in the area.

The parliamentary seat was occupied by House Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, and following tradition, the major parties including the Conservatives, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats refrained from contesting it.

In 2019, the quantity of spoiled ballots surged by 58% compared to the 74,189 votes deemed invalid during the 2017 general election.

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